SOUTHEAST'S LIFEBATE SERVICE CELEBRATES 10 YEARS

Southeast Missouri Hospital's LifeBeat Air Medical trauma team Friday celebrated 10 years of treating trauma in Southeast Missouri.

With cake and candles, a team of 20 flight nurses, paramedics and eight communications specialists were honored for their service during a trauma-related conference at the Show Me Center.

The hospital became certified to have a medical helicopter after showing a need for air transfer of patients in the area. The increasing number of critical-care patients, the area's population and the transport time to a trauma center were all taken into consideration. After approval the team began flights with a single-engine helicopter. In 1996, the team received a twin-engine helicopter, which handles two trauma patients at a time.

Claudia Williams, director of special-care services at the hospital, said the inception of LifeBeat was a group project. "The whole hospital was involved in LifeBeat as a group project," she said. Hospital employees were asked for their opinion. "They were asked what the color scheme of the helicopter should be," said Williams.

Since August 1987, more than 4,400 missions have been completed in the twin-engine medical helicopter. During the past year, LifeBeat has responded to 1,058 requests for emergency medical service.

Flight nurse Bertram Hicks said the team has to work in a very small space. "It's really cramped in there. The paramedic sits at the head of the patient and the flight nurse sits in a tight position between supplies," he said. Sometimes patients are apprehensive about flying. "It's noisy in the helicopter. We have to use headphones to communicate with each other," Hicks said. "Sometimes I have to educate patients about flying and clam them down."

LifeBeat chief flight nurse Rodger Huffman said LifeBeat averages 45 to 50 missions a month. "Most of those are in the summer months," he said. "Car accidents and just the fact that kids are out of school increase the number of trauma cases."

LifeBeat does not fly for all missions. Weather will keep the team grounded.

"We check the weather before flight," said Hicks. "Even if it looks clear out we check the weather -- you don't know if a weather front is coming in." In September 1995 the LifeBeat helicopter crashed on its way to a trauma site due to fog. There were no fatalities and that crash was the only one in LifeBeat's history.

Respiratory therapist and EMT Tom O'Brien said he is proud to be part of the LifeBeat team. "The job satisfaction is unbelievable. My wife wants me to quit because she says it's too dangerous. I just can't stop doing it," he said.

Hicks said he has wanted to do flight trauma care since he was in nursing school. "From the moment we get the 1-800 call there is an adrenaline rush. I calm down for a while in flight but it starts all over when you get to the site."

LifeBeat program director Pat Pennington is proud of the program. "The program has the state-of-the-art services. It has saved a lot of lives over the years. I am proud of the rapid intervention and high quality of our nursing staff," she said.